Ukraine To Yield Arms To Russia Yeltsin: Missiles Will Be Destroyed

MOSCOW -- Russian President Boris Yeltsin said on Wednesday that he had been assured that Ukraine`s battlefield nuclear weapons would be transferred to Russia by July as planned.

But there was no confirmation from Kiev that Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk had reversed his order to halt the move.

The news agencies Itar-Tass and Interfax reported that Yeltsin told Russian members of Parliament that Kravchuk had told him on Tuesday by telephone that he would meet the July 1 deadline for moving all tactical nuclear weapons to Russia for destruction.

The elimination of the weapons was agreed on between the United States and the former Soviet Union last fall, and once the Commonwealth of Independent States was formed by 11 former Soviet republics, Ukraine agreed to transfer its weapons to Russia for dismantling.

But last week, Kravchuk unexpectedly announced that he was suspending the transfer, saying he had no guarantees the weapons were being destroyed. He said that Ukraine might set up its own dismantling plant, and asked for Western money to do so.

The declaration disturbed Washington. In Moscow, it was viewed largely as a ploy by Ukraine to wrest a share of Western funds earmarked for the dismantling, and as a political maneuver in advance of the meeting on Friday of commonwealth leaders in Kiev.

The fate of the vast military machine of the former Soviet Union is high on the agenda, and Ukraine has been especially adamant in resisting Russia`s claim to the bulk of the former Soviet army.

Though couched largely in terms of nation-building, the kernel of the dispute was considered to be the potential commercial value of military hardware.

Earlier this week, on his return from a two-week vacation, Yeltsin announced that Russia was setting up its own defense ministry, with himself as acting minister.

At a briefing for members of Parliament, Yeltsin said that he regarded establishment of a defense ministry as a transitional step, and that it did not portend the transfer of former Soviet troops to Russia.

Until now, Russia has argued for the maintenance of a unified commonwealth army; Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova have insisted on forming independent armies and disbanding all but the strategic nuclear arm of the former Soviet forces, which would remain under a unified command.

Military issues are expected to be at the top of the agenda of the meeting on Friday. Yeltsin`s spokesman, Alexei Novikov, said that the agenda included an agreement on relocating of nuclear materiel, a decision on the united command and a convention on not using force among commonwealth members.